Stevens: Government must get back to basics

Charlie Stevens can think of several things he'd rather be doing than jumping into politics for the first time.

Spending more time keeping up with his children would be good. Abby, a junior at Kapaun Mount Carmel High School, plays tennis. Sam, a freshman, plays golf.

And there's always more to do at his church, First Evangelical Free Church.

Instead, Stevens is logging long hours campaigning for City Council in District 2 in east Wichita. He won a tight primary race with 30 percent of the vote and will face Pete Meitzner on April 5.

If Stevens should win, more of his time would be required. He said it would be worth it.

"The best thing we can do for our kids is to put government back into its intended place," Stevens said.

Some of his main goals: focus on core services, rein in spending, oppose almost all economic incentives for businesses and have city government work for the good of all.

"For me, it's just common sense," Stevens said, noting that 30 percent of the city's budget goes toward paying down its debt of nearly $156 million. "We have to start living within our means."

The foundation for any of his decisions on the council, he said, would be his belief that "there's a fundamental truth to life. We need to be treating everybody the way we want to be treated."

Golf and real estate

The Stevens family is well known in Wichita for golf and real estate development.

Let's start with golf.

Just about everyone in the family plays the game. Grandma Annie Stevens, 93, is a former city champion and still plays nine holes daily when weather permits. Uncle Jack Stevens won a state title. Cathy Tilma, one of Charlie's two older sisters, won numerous state titles.

His dad, Johnny Stevens, won two state amateur golf titles in the early 1960s and played for two years on the PGA Tour.

Stevens, the state's defending amateur golf champion, started his college golf career at the University of Oklahoma, where he met his wife, Pam, a Big Eight champion in tennis doubles. He played his last two years at Texas Christian University, where he earned All-American honors.

Stevens works with his father at March Oil, a company started by his grandfather Bill Graham. It now focuses almost entirely on real estate managing and developing.

Some of its local projects have been the Waterfront, near 13th and Webb Road, and the old Builder's Square building in east Wichita, where DTY Direct is the main tenant. March Oil also has several warehouses.

After graduating from TCU in 1992, Stevens stayed in Fort Worth to manage and develop property for March Oil.

"I cut my teeth managing shopping centers in Fort Worth," he said. "I did everything from taking out trash, to painting over graffiti and unclogging sewer lines."

In that regard, not much has changed for him since moving back to Wichita in 2008 to be closer to family.

"We're a very hands-on company," Stevens said. "We're very involved with all our projects."

He also learned more than golf from his dad.

"My dad is an extremely hard worker," Stevens said. "That rubs off. I would say I don't work as hard as he does. I aspire to."

Strong core services

Marlin Penner, a Wichita commercial real estate broker, said of Stevens, "He's certainly a bright young man and comes from a fine family with a strong business background. He's passionate about the free-enterprise system."

Stevens emphasizes that the city should trying to bring in businesses by promoting its assets, such as Wichita State University, a skilled labor force, short commute times and a family-friendly atmosphere.

He disagrees that the city has to offer incentives just because other government entities do.

"We have a lot to sell," he said. "But what we're doing is selling our incentives. We're doing exactly what other states and cities are doing, and it isn't getting us ahead.

"If a company locates here because they got money, they're gone as soon as they get more money from somebody else. They have to have vested reason for being here."

One economic incentive he said he would never support is the community improvement district, or CID.

CIDs allow businesses to add an additional charge of up to 2 percent to a customer's bill to pay for construction, landscaping and other projects. That extra charge can last up to 22 years.

Stevens rejected the argument that no one is hurt by a CID because a customer can make a choice whether to shop at a store that tacks on the extra charge.

He noted the recent CID approved by the City Council for Cabela's, which plans to build a store in northeast Wichita. Cabela's is expected to raise $17.2 million from the CID over 22 years.

"That's $17 million pulled out of our economy," Stevens said. "That money wouldn't have just disappeared. It would have gotten spent. But it's going directly to the developer."

Having strong core services in seven areas — police, fire, water, sewer, streets, parks and arts — and getting back to free-market principles is what will set Wichita apart from other cities, he said.

But he said that won't happen without tough decisions.

"Everybody wants to talk about reducing the budget and cutting taxes," Stevens said. "But they continue to approve all these things that don't allow us to cut the budget. If we want to effect some real change, we have to make some difficult decisions.

"It's not hard to say 'yes' to everybody. I don't want to be portrayed as the 'no' guy. But I do want people to know that, if we want to get government back into what it was originally intended to do — take care of core services — then there are going to be some things we are going to have to do without."

This story was originally published March 23, 2011 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Stevens: Government must get back to basics."